An Essex hatchery supplying turkeys poults to farmers across the country has seen growth in demand, which it said was linked to the increase in local shopping during the coronavirus pandemic. Many butchers’ shops have had a boom in sales.
“Many butchers have doubled their business and had many new customers coming through their doors,” said Paul Kelly, managing director of FarmGate Hatcheries at Danbury, near Chelmsford. “This has led to farmers who supply butchers with traditional Christmas turkeys ordering more day-old poults.
Kelly said he hoped the trend continued once the pandemic had passed. “Those farmers who supply businesses with good home delivery sales have also seen double-digit growth.
“The feeling is that shopping local and supporting local food producers has gathered momentum. But people have short memories, so it will be interesting to see how many of those people do not go back to their old ways.”